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by mieraspeller



Series: Dragonrider Girl [1]
Category: Dragonriders of Pern - Anne McCaffrey
Genre: Canon Divergent, Female Dragonriders, Gen, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-30
Updated: 2016-04-30
Packaged: 2018-06-05 08:58:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,306
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6698350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mieraspeller/pseuds/mieraspeller
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The beginning of a new era on Pern.</p>
            </blockquote>





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**Author's Note:**

> This is set a few turns after Skies Of Pern (which took place in the 30th/31st turns of the ninth and last pass, 2538-9 AL or 2551-52 AAT).

**2541 AL**  
**2554 AAT**

“Ready?” Rema’s foster sib K’mir poked his head into the kitchens and raised his eyebrows. Rema carefully wiped the knife she had been using to cut up tubers with her apron and glanced at Ilera, the Fort Headwoman. She smiled and waved her on. Rema hurried over to K’mir, falling in step as he started towards the ledge Renith favored to perch on. 

“Let me grab my jacket from- “

K’mir held it out to her and she frowned as she tugged it on. “I told you to stop going through my things.” 

“I didn’t want you to be late! You know how Tagetarl is about punctuality.” They came out of the winding hall to K’mir’s weyr, where Renith lounged on the ledge, stretching his neck out to get full advantage of the morning sun.

Rema snorted. “And it has nothing to do with Gedda’s green being proddy.” 

K’mir ducked his head, looking pained. Rema turned to Renith as he twisted upright and looked at them.

_Mulanth will not fly without us._

“Thanks for that, Renny,” K’mir coughed. “C’mon, let’s get a move on.” He stepped up onto Renith’s shoulder and swung himself into place, reaching down to give Rema a hand. 

She ignored him, leaning in to pat Renith’s side.

“Lovely to see _you_ , Renith. Thank you for taking me to Landing.”

 _You will tell me what you learn?_ Renith inquired, sounding a bit wistful. He had been disappointed about being too big to fit in the Admin building after hearing Rema’s stories about it.

 _Of course!_ Rema assured him. K’mir sighed loudly behind her, and she stuck out her tongue at him. 

“Stop plotting with my dragon, girl. He’s been trying to get me to read the histories to him, because of you.” 

_They are_ interesting _,_ Renith protested. He stood, shaking his wings out. _Rema told me of a blue dragon called Tazith, whose rider was a woman._

K’mir furrowed his brow. “Rema…” 

“It’s true! I found it in the weyr records. Now, let’s go, or we _will_ be late.” 

 

 

Rema grinned when they came out of _between_ into the hot sunshine so prevalent on the Southern continent. Renith flew down, settling carefully between the bulk of two much larger bronze and gold dragons that Rema didn’t recognize - probably from Ista or Telgar, two of the weyrs least familiar to her. 

She slid down off Renith’s back carefully, once more eschewing K’mir’s helping hand. Patting the brown hide fondly, she called a farewell to K’mir and another promise to relay any new dragon related learnings to Renith, before jogging off to the main building. 

“Rema!” Inside, a familiar voice called out and Rema veered towards it, grinning when she saw Lenna, long arms waving at her from a computer station. “I saved one for us!” 

“What are we learning about today?” Rema asked, sliding on the bench next to her friend. She tweaked her red braid and smirked when Lenna shoulder bumped her. 

“The first leaders of our society,” Lenna told her importantly. The girls huddled over the computer screen, Lenna operating the mouse as the scrolled down the page. There was an image of a older, blond haired and deeply tanned man who looked rather formidable.

“Ad-my-rall?” Rema sounded out the world doubtfully. “How do you say that?” The small speaker next to the monitor crackled to life obligingly. 

“Admiral Paul Benden.”

“Benden?!” Lenna exclaimed, then turned red when half the room shushed her. She leaned in, whispering, “As in Benden Hold and Weyr?” 

Rema wrested the mouse away and scrolled further, lips moving as she passed unfamiliar words about far flung wars. “Hmph. Just a lot of fancy words for fighting. Sounds dull to me.” 

Lenna gave her a scandalized look, but didn’t protest when she moved on to the next section. Another image preceeded this one, of an older woman with graying hair and slight smile. 

“Governor Emily Boll,” Rema sounded out. She blinked at the screen in surprise. “Governor is like…?” she scrolled over and clicked on the word, and another page came up, with a distinctly Pernese definition. “Equivalent to a Lord Holder.” 

“Gracious goodness,” Lenna murmured - a saying she’d picked up from the Headwoman of the Harper Hall she resided in. “I thought Lady Janissian was the first Lady Holder.” 

“This was over 2000 Turns ago,” Rema said. “The first colonizers of Pern.” 

“Wait… but why was Lady Janissian being a Lady Holder such a problem, if it’s been done before?” 

“Because even those hidebound old tunnelsnakes don’t pay attention to the records they love so much,” Rema stated, matter of fact. “And this just confirms what I found in the records about Xhinna!” 

“Your blue dragon rider girl?” Lenna asked, with a sigh. “I thought it was decided that it was just a make believe for the kids.” 

“Why would a story be put in the _official_ weyr records?” Rema demanded. “It’s just- Oh.” Rema’s mouth shut with a clap as she caught movement from the corner of her eye. She turned slowly, holding back a wince. “Wingleader R’laden.” 

“Please go on,” he said, with an easy grin. “I’ve had everyone telling me about all the fantastic things they’ve been digging up here for years and I finally had a time slot to come here myself. It seems we have some unknown history in our own weyr, as well.” 

“Um.” Rema glanced at Lenna for rescue, but the other girl just looked back at her, eyes wide. “Well, I helped when AIVAS wanted us to bring all of our records to be scanned. And in one of the records from the third pass, I found a mention of a blue rider. Xhinna. And we’ve just now been learning about the first colonists, and…” she trailed off. Talking about it with Lenna and Renith was one thing. But R’laden was a Wingleader in her own weyr, and everyone knew he was favored to be the next Weyrleader after N’ton and Margatta stepped down. And even if Ilera might not like it, he had more pull with the Weyrleader than she. He would have no problem turning her out. 

No sense worrying about after the fact, though, she decided. Straightening her shoulders, she pointed at the screen. “ _Lady_ Governor, Emily Boll.” 

“Ah, Southern Boll’s namesake. An interesting woman.” 

And _that_ quite took the wind from her sails. “You know?” 

“Not about Xhinna. That’s something I hadn’t heard yet. Thank you for the information - I know a few green riders who would be interested in researching her further.” R’laden nodded at the girls and straightened. “And I better get back to my own station before someone decides I’ve abandoned it.” 

Rema turned wide eyes onto Lenna as R’laden strolled away. “So maybe girls can ride more than golds and green,” she whispered. 

“Rema-” Lenna began doubtfully, but Rema ignored her, going back to the screen and skipping past the lesson to search for more women leaders and dragonriders. Distantly, behind the fervor of her new interest, she heard Lenna say, “Oh shards. I suppose this means I’m going to fail my recitation tomorrow.” 

 

 

 

The next time brown rider K’mir was tagged for searching, Renith was being unusually furtive. As furtive as a 30 foot dragon could be. He had a feeling it was to do with Rema spending all her free time reading printouts - and where had she gotten the marks for that much paper? - to Renith, and occasionally a few other dragons who liked to sun themselves on ledges near Renith’s favorite spot. When he sent an inquiring thought at Renith, he only received a mischievous non answer. And when the usual crowd of clamoring young boys sets up a safe twenty feet away, Renith ignored them entirely, craning his neck high and spinning his head like one of the new found satellites. 

“Right -- I’ll just go pay my respects to the Lady Holder, shall I?” 

Renith passed on a distracted affirmative, before turning his mind to green Mulanth. 

“Any idea what they’re up to?” Gedda, Mulanth’s rider, asked quietly, and K’mir gave a bare shake of his hand before standing at a more respectful posture to greet Lady Janissian. While they sat for lunch, keeping a watchful eye on the lads outside, Renith noticed three more younglings -- girls by the looks of their clothes, creeping up behind Mulanth from the opposite side of the courtyard. He made to stand, but Gedda pinched his side and shook her head. 

“Mulanth knows they’re there,” she whispered, before turning back to the conversation.

Then a question was directed at K’mir, and he was forced to remember his manners and answer.

 

When the dragonriders finish their repast and went back to the courtyard, there were no less than five girls leaning on, or in one small girl’s case, clambering _on_ the dragons. 

“What-?” K’mir started, and then Gedda began laughing as both Mulanth and Renith project to them both a very smug pride at having found so many candidates. 

A moment later two of the older girls approached Gedda, looking starstruck, and K’mir found himself quite out of favor as the rest of the girls went between admiring Mulanth and Renith, and asking Gedda all about being a lady dragonrider. 

From behind one of the older girls, a young boy crept over and tugged on K’mir’s jacket. 

“Your dragon, sir, -- Renith, he said my sister and I are to go back to the Weyr with you?” 

K’mir felt his eyebrows raising quite involuntarily, before nodding. “Well, if he says, it must be so. You best run and get your things, and say your good-byes.” 

The boy grinned widely and spun around to race away, only stopping to yell, “Don’t leave without me!”

 _All of them?_ K’mir asked Renith, and Renith dipped his head. _We don’t even have a queen dragon in this clutch!_

Renith ignored him. 

 

It took longer than it had during previous Searchings to get all the hold children ready -- mainly due to the shock at the hold folk in losing their daughters. Gedda had to explain to several anxious parents that the girls weren’t being drafted for a life of libidinous activities, and were welcome to return home if they didn’t impress. 

Neither dragonrider mentioned that few left the Weyr, even without impressing a dragon. Though he hoped they wouldn’t be too disappointed if they didn’t Impress - it was a small clutch of only twelve eggs, and maybe half of them would be green.

Mulanth called out to Polanth, and he and M’ten appeared in the sky seconds later -- timing it being less troublesome than rushing out of bed, and less likely to get one in trouble with N’ton as weyrleader. In less than a quarter hour everyone was bundled up in furs, tied securely to the riding straps, and ready for the return trip. 

Fort Weyr was bustling when they got back, and the only people who gave them strange looks were the drudges who were handing out the white shifts the candidates wore on the sands. K’mir and the other riders were hustled out in short order. M’ten jogged down the hall, presumably to grab a seat with a good view.

“I’m staying,” Gedda said, stationing herself outside the door to the weyrling barracks they were using. “I don’t want anyone getting ideas about stopping the girls from standing.” 

K’mir, who had been about to follow M’ten to the Hatching grounds, stopped and looked at his wing-sister’s fierce expression, then wordlessly settled at the other side of the door. Even after Mirrim and Tai, arguably the most well-known of the women riders of green dragons, Gedda had had to fight harder than any male weyrling to be accepted by the rest of their wing. Renith sent him a questioning-happy probe, and K’mir sent back a wordless reassurance. 

“We’ll get them there before the first egg cracks,”K’mir promised. 

 

 

The clutch was small, as there was no current need for another queen dragon, but that didn’t stop Ludeth -- or Margatta for that matter -- from hovering protectively over the eggs on the hatching sands. N’ton was talking to a holder near the stands, and K’mir’s own Wingleader, R’laden, was standing at the other entrance with wingseconds H’wel and T’rellen.

A few of the riders from other Weyrs were looking at R’laden, and K’mir scowled, before Gedda elbowed him. 

“Just gossiping about new leadership possibilities,” she said. “Though my bet is N’ton sticks it out until Fall is over for good. And they’re won’t be much cause for a new Weyrleader after that.”

Right. K’mir had heard Margatta and N’ton planned on stepping down once this last Fall was over. He still had a hard time believing that in less than fifteen Turns, the Weyrs would be out of a job. Sure, they were meant to watch the sky and protect Pern from more of those things - asteroids? - but how common could those be? Gedda nudged his arm, and he blinked back into focus, watching as the girls - and one boy - they had brought in picked their way gingerly across the hot sands. His eyes flicked past R’laden and his wingseconds, up to a flash of red in the stands. A second later he realized it was Rema’s Gather tunic, the brightest thing in the stands. She was grinning and bouncing in her seat, occasionally nudging that red-haired Harper girl she was attached at the hip with. He narrowed his eyes, all thought of Weyr politics falling to the wayside. Now he definitely suspected their crop of potentials was influenced by his little foster sister. 

But the dragons were humming, and Renith was projecting happiness so strongly that K’mir was getting flashbacks to their own Impression. He grinned in spite of himself and settled in to watch. 

**Author's Note:**

> Essentially, I wanted more women dragonriders and less of the hidebound sexism. I don't care what canon says. This is the beginning of a series that spans at least two generations.


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